Little Red
by scarvletchaos
Summary: (ALSO PUBLISHED ON WATTPAD UNDER SAME NAME) Thanos won. He snapped his fingers and Wanda Maximoff was dust. She felt herself slip away into the darkness— so when she wakes up in 2017, in California, with a werewolf pack hellbent on helping her and hunters that are hellbent on killing her, she's a little confused.
1. Woman In Red

**CHAPTER ONE: **

**WOMAN IN RED**

**THE WARMTH OF THE SUN WAS THE FIRST THING WANDA MAXIMOFF FELT**. The next was the pain pounding in her head.

Wanda groaned. She sat up, bringing her hand to her head. Was this what the afterlife was supposed to be? An empty forest and a raging headache?

But she shouldn't be feeling any pain. She died. She felt herself die. She turned to ash.

But here she was, living, breathing, with a pounding headache.

Wanda climbed to her feet, stumbling. Breathe. Just breathe.

Vis.

Where was Vision?

But she couldn't find him. She couldn't breathe. Her breath caught in her throat, a red mist dancing around her fingers. Wanda clenched her fists, closing her eyes.

All she saw was that image of Thanos ripping the mind stone out of his head, Visions gray body hitting the ground with a light thud. He was an empty shell.

Nothing but an empty shell.

Wanda opened her eyes.

And she saw... a tree?

No, a tree stump. A huge, tree stump in the middle of the forest.

That wasn't there before. This wasn't even where she died in Wakanda. She woke up somewhere else.

Wanda tapped her earpiece. "Hello? Sam?" Static. "Steve? Barnes? Can anyone hear me?"

Nothing but static. She tried for Nat. Nothing. No T'Challa or Banner either. Just empty static.

_Well, shit_. Wanda thought.

Wanda started walking, not knowing where she was going, hoping to find her way back to civilization. The more she walked the more she realized this looked less and less like Wakanda. Different trees. Different air.

Wanda couldn't explain it, but this was some place foreign. Wanda was ecstatic when she came to a road. So she wasn't in an endless forest after all. That gave her some relief at the least.

Wanda followed the sign, making sure the cars that passed her ignored her. She came to the final conclusion that she was definitely not in Wakanda by a simple look at the cars. Now she just needed to figure out where.

And how.

Wanda came to a sign, looking both ways to cross the street before she read it. She didn't want to die twice. How uneventful it'd be for Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch, to get hit by a car, after she had turned to dust about an hour ago.

HYDRA would laugh in her face.

Wanda read the sign, narrowing her eyes

**WELCOME TO BEACON HILLS, CALIFORNIA!**

She could hear Strucker laughing in her head. Hear those terrible guards mocking her.

How in the absolute hell did she end up in California?

**AFTER A LITTLE MIND DIGGING THROUGH THE TRUCK DRIVER KIND ENOUGH TO GIVE HER A RIDE**, Wanda discovered that she was not where she was supposed to be.

More so, not _when_ she was supposed to be.

No Snap. No Thanos, no alien invasion. No fifty percent of all living things vanishing. Everything was right where they were supposed to be.

Well, except for Wanda, of course.

It was September 2017.

Not April 2018.

And that really pissed her off

She was sent back in time. She dug through the truck drivers memory more. There was no memory of the Avengers, of Loki or the attack on New York. No Ultron. Or Hydra. Or SHIELD. No Iron Man or Captain America. No _her_.

Maybe Wanda forgot that in 2017, she was a war criminal on the run with Steve Rogers.

But now?

Now— now Wanda was just some random girl, picked up on the side of the road.

She did a mental reign check.

Wanda was alive. _Check_.

Wanda was breathing. _Check_.

The Snap didn't happen. _Check_.

The Avengers don't exist. _Check_.

Wanda, doesn't exist. _Check_.

Wanda still had her powers. _Check_.

_Oh boy_, did this really suck. Wanda was trapped in some alternate dimension where she wasn't real. Where her team, wasn't real.

Here, Wanda wasn't an Avenger. Wanda wasn't a war criminal, or monster to the public. Here she wasn't a HYDRA experiment. Here, she was just some girl in a strange, red get up.

Well, she also had terrifying powers. But no one really needed to know that, did they?

She thanked the truck driver, stepping out of the vehicle. She had asked him to drop her off at the local library. Wanda entered, ignoring the strange looks she got, and sat herself down at the public computers. Wanda pulled off her gloves, feeling annoyed by the material. They were meant for fighting, not a public library. She typed into google:

**AVENGERS.**

Nothing.

**CAPTAIN AMERICA**.

All that came up was a picture of "Uncle Sam."

**WANDA MAXIMOFF**.

Nothing.

**TONY STARK**.

A Game of Thrones character came up, who only shared the surname.

Wanda glared at the computer. Wanda clenched her fists, feeling them start to shake. She could feel her eyes start to glow red. She could not have a meltdown here. Not down. She could not put all these people in danger. She closed her eyes and started to count down from ten.

Ten. Wanda didn't exist.

Nine. Wanda was a ghost to the world.

Eight. Her team is gone.

Seven. Wanda was sent back a year in the past.

Six. HYDRA is gone. They can't hurt her.

Five. SHIELD and the Avengers are gone. They can't protect her.

Four. Wanda was alone.

Three. She could start over, in this small, creepy, unsettling town in California.

Two. Vision was gone. He couldn't help her.

One. Wanda opened her eyes, seeing the mist around her fist die down. She examined her surroundings, no one noticed her. Either head first into a book or looking at a screen. Wanda didn't lose control.

Okay. She needed a plan. She couldn't just sleep on the street. She didn't like using her powers to get free stuff, but until she could find a permanent place to stay, it seemed to be the only option.

Wanda erased the search history from the computer, turning it off. Wanda stood up, pushing her chair back in. She got her confirmation. This was a different world from her own. And the Snap brought her here.

But, was it really just her? Around three and a half billion people died, just on earth. But three and a half billion people appearing out of nowhere would cause a mass panic, and she for sure would've heard of it.

She knew Barnes disappeared. She saw him. She didn't see Sam, but she could feel him die. She could feel half the universe die and she absolutely hated it. Maybe it was a mercy of Thanos for the snap to take her to.

But she wasn't dead.

Wanda was alive.

Wanda was breathing.

Wanda's heart was beating.

And she was going to figure things out.

Wanda took one last look at the computer, and turned to leave. A plan started to formulate in her head. Maybe she could—

Wanda's senses went haywire. Someone was watching her. Someone was thinking about her. Someone had noticed her, and she wanted to curse them for interrupting her train of thought.

Wanda's eyes fell on a boy, which was one way to put it. She examined him, his aura was powerful but... off. His jaw was crooked and Wanda couldn't tell if that was natural or a defect from being punched in the face to many times. He was about her age— eighteen, maybe a little younger. His dark eyes stared at her, and her green eyes stared right back.

He had strong walls, built around his head. But Wanda easily knocked them down.

She saw flashing eyes, different colors. Some blue, some yellow, a few red. Claws and fangs. A black creature holding a sword, going through an archer girl—

Wanda exited his mind, not wishing to see more. Maybe it was from some stupid teen drama show he watched. But she saw him in those memories. Glowing red eyes.

Wanda shook her head, her eyes turning away from him and proceeding to leave the library. She'll add that as one more thing to look into. Despite the horrifying glowing eyes, it gave Wanda some hope that she was not the only monster that roamed this world.

**THE WOMAN— THE GIRL IN RED CAUGHT SCOTTS ATTENTION THE MOMENT SHE ENTERED THE LIBRARY**. Scott saw her calculating eyes scan the library, looking for any sign of a threat. Scott put his eyes down, not wishing for her to see him.

Scott had been at the library to do some background research on the Ghost Riders. They had pass, yes. Stiles was okay. Peter Hale was annoying as ever, but he was okay as well.

And Scott was terrified of them coming back when his guard was down, not even realizing that someone important might be gone.

They were defeated, but Scott was paranoid.

Scott watched the redhead— strawberry blonde? Stiles taught him how to see the difference. He watched her sit down at the computer. Immediately going to google, typing and retyping and getting disappointed each time.

Scott saw her close her eyes, closing her fists. Scott thought he saw a weird, red mist form around them. But as soon as it started it went away.

Well, she was clearly frustrated.

Before she left, she made eye contact with Scott. Scott couldn't look away. It lasted for five seconds. Scott counted. He didn't notice that his head was hurting until after she broke eye contact. She rushed out of the library, Scott had every instinct to follow her, track her down.

But instead he went to her computer, curiously. He wanted to see what she was looking up.

To his, of course luck; she wiped the history. Scott noticed the pair of gloves she had left, picking them up. She must've forgotten them.

They were laced with her scent of course. It was strange, powerful. Smelt like firewood and lighting mixed with blood and iron.

And it wasn't human.

**So sorry that this took so long. I'm so excited for this. This is a bit unedited besides a little sweep through with Grammarly because I wanted to get it up. Please leave opinions and questions in the comments! **

**Till next time, loves.**


	2. Said The Spider To The Fly

**CHAPTER TWO:**

**SAID THE SPIDER **

**TO THE FLY**

**A/N Honestly? Wasn't expecting this to get that many reads.**

* * *

**THERE WAS DEATH HERE**. A lot of death.

Wanda could _feel_ it.

She found herself trailing a lot of Beacon Hill residents, lately. That has led her to find some... unsettling, discoveries.

A horde of dead wolves was the first thing she found. Every single time she had stepped foot into this odd little town she made a new discovery. And honestly? She _hated_ it.

She had watched lacrosse practice from the bleachers— Wanda had changed her clothes, no longer standing out like a sore thumb. She felt bad for messing with the cashiers' mind in order to get them.

Maybe it was just her luck that the strange boy from the library was here, standing on the outskirts of the field, seeming to be mid-argument with the coach.

From Wanda could hear, it was about a player that was currently missing-in-action.

She watched as the said player ran onto the field. She watched him catch the ball in his net before it had the chance to hit some poor kid in the face.

She watched as the kid was tackled, hitting the ground with a hard thud. She watched as the library boy ran forward, talking to the younger one, covering his head.

Wanda's eyes narrowed. The younger one was freaking out. She read the name on the back of his jersey, _Dunbar_.

"McCall!" The coach yelled. At least she had a last name. "What the hell was that? That wasn't a foul— that's called winning!"

Dunbar calmed down, standing up with McCall. Wanda was the first one to notice the bloody, injured wolf wandered into the field.

The players grew tense, leaning in and whispering to each other. Wanda stood up, ready to use her powers if needed. She hated the thought of making her presence in this world known, but she wasn't also very keen to the idea of letting a bunch of high schoolers die to a wolf.

Wanda watched McCall have an intense staring contest with the wolf. The wolf eventually backed down, limping into the woods. The rest of the team left for the locker room, McCall and Dunbar slipping into the woods, unnoticed.

Unnoticed by everyone but Wanda, of course.

_Were they insane?_

What was with American boys and their crazy death wish? Wanda thought back to her teammates— old, team mates, Wanda reminded herself— Steve, flying a plane into the Arctic, Tony, flying a nuclear bomb through a wormhole. And Clint charging head first into a battle with deadly robots with just a bow and arrow.

Although, Wanda thought, Clint's constant teasing of Natasha was enough to show off that that man did not fear death.

But he might as well have been dead now. She hated that she didn't know what had happened to him, or any of her teammates.

Did they avenge them? Did they avenge her?

Wanda shook the thought from her head. She blinked, realizing that McCall and Dunbar had disappeared into the tree line. Wanda cursed herself for not paying attention, and for losing track of the boys.

Wanda cursing herself, decided on following them. She got up from the bleachers, observing her surroundings— everyone who was practicing had retired to the locker rooms. She slipped into the forest behind the field, trailing McCall and Dunbar.

Wanda trailed for along enough behind the boys, making sure they didn't notice her— using her powers to hide her presence.

"Do you think it's a wolf-wolf or...?" Dunbar asked, his question making Wanda's eyebrows shoot up. What did he mean?

"I think it's just a wolf," McCall assured, although Wanda could tell he didn't seem so sure himself. They began reaching the point where Wanda had found the horde of dead wolves. Wanda fell behind, hiding behind a tree. This would be enough to turn them around.

They come to an abrupt stop, silent— staring at the body of a dead wolf. Wanda watched with disgust as hundreds of tiny black spiders crawled out of its eye sockets.

"Scott..." Dunbar said, nudging McCall. _Scott_. Scott McCall, huh?

Dunbar gestured toward the pit of dead wolves, a mixed look of disgust and concern crawling up on his face.

_Well_, Wanda thought, thinking of all the spiders, t_hat was rather disgusting_.

* * *

**"THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE," **Liam was helping Scott close his overstuffed suitcase, their combined werewolf strength not cutting it, unfortunately. Scott was starting to think that maybe he should've packed two suitcases.

"Whatever happened..." Liam grunted, pushing. "with those wolves— was definitely supernatural."

"Well," Scott said, with a final push, latching the suitcase shut. "I wouldn't say _definitely_. It could've been a parasitic infection. I mean, we get dogs coming to the clinic with bot flies coming out of their skin."

Liam was not reassured, his face twisting in disgust. "Can that happen to people?"

"Yeah, they crawl under their skin," Scott said, lifting the closed suitcase on his bed, sitting down next to it. "lay some eggs, and eventually they—" the suitcase exploded, Scott groaning. "burst."

Liam was equally frustrated, sitting next to him.

"So do you wanna talk about it?" Scott asked." Liam looked at Scott, confused.

"I thought we were talking about it?"

Scott shook his head."No, that's not what I'm talking about."

Liam's eyes widened in realization. "Oh. _That_. Me." He chuckled, anxiously.

Scott sighed. "Yeah, you. Your fangs, your fangs, your growl."

Liam smiled nervously at Scott, the alpha staring at his beta intently. "It's not that we've gotta talk about this."

"You've just gotta remember your mantra," Scott said. "What three things cannot be hidden?"

Liam groaned "Look, I haven't had to use that in—"

"What three things cannot long be hidden?" Scott repeated.

Liam sighed, impatiently. "The sun, the moon, the truth."

Scott nodded. "Again."

Liam took a deep breath and closed his eyes before repeating the mantra.

"The sun... The moon... The truth..."

Scott focused his hearing on Liams heart beat, listening to it slow down. His beta calmed down.

"Now what's bothering you?" Scott did a double take, staring at his beta.

"I— what?"

Liam laughed. "There's been something bothering you for the past few days. What is it?"

Scott groaned, he couldn't lie to his beta. But he also didn't want Liam to think Scott was being silly. "There was this girl... at the library the other day."

Liam raised his eyebrows. "Girl? I thought you had this weird thing going with Malia?"

Scott shot up, glaring at Liam. "What? No— at least I don't think so. It was nothing like that— anyway!" He three his hands up. "I caught her scent— and it wasn't human. Wasn't wolf. Wasn't coyote or banshee or anything like that. And I'm not sure what to make of it. And today— when we were in the woods? I could sense her. I could smell her. But it was like she wasn't even there— like a ghost."

"Have you tried tracking her?" Liam asked, now curious about this mystery girl.

Scott frowned. "Well— no, not really. I've been busy packing, I haven't really given it a thought. But I do have," He rummaged through his pocket, pulling out a red, leather glove. "this."

Liam stood, taking the glove . "I'll you track her for you tomorrow then."

Scott shook his head. "No— I can't ask you to do that Liam."

"You worry about packing. I got this." He said, confidently. He turned his attention to the disaster of the suitcase. "You don't have another suitcase, do you?"

Scott pulled something off his shelf, holding it up, defeated. "I got duct tape!"

* * *

**WANDA SAT IN THE CLEARING, LEGS CROSSED. **Her eyes shut, taking long, deep breaths. She loved meditating— it helped keep her and her powers in sync. Calmed her down in the worst of times.

This would be considered the worst of times, unfortunately.

Because Wanda was really starting to dislike this strange universe she was in— it was all so wrong. The energy was off. The homesickness had hit her like a bulletproof. She missed Natashas scolding and Steve's warm hugs. Sam and Bucky's bickering. Bloody hell, she even missed Tony and his stupid goatee.

And now none of them existed. If she could only find a way to get back to her—

Wanda's eyes snapped open, sensing two beings approaching her. Wanda quickly got to her feet, agitated that she was disrupted.

Wanda narrowed her eyes, seeing that it was Dunbar and a boy she didn't recognize approaching her.

"Ah hah!" Dunbar exclaimed, pointing his finger at her, looking at his companion. "Told you she was real?"

"Congrats," His friend said nervously, eyeing Wanda with wariness. "She exists! Can we leave now?"

Dunbar stepped closer, ignoring his friend. "What are you?" He asked, his head inclined.

Wanda tilted her head, curiously. "I beg your pardon?"

The companion was alarmed, glancing at Dunbar. "Is that a Russian accent?"

Wanda scowled, crossing her arms. She hated being mistaken for those damn Soviets. "Sokovian."

"Sokovi— what?" Dunbar asked, dumbfounded. _Right, Sokovia doesn't exist here_. She missed her home country so much. She missed her _universe_ even more.

"_Sokovian_." Wanda repeated.

"Alright," Dunbar shrugged, seeming to not believe her, but didn't want to push her further. "What are you?"

Wanda pondered for a moment, deciding to play dumb. "Were you not listening to me? I said I'm Sokovian—"

The boy shook his head. "No, I mean, what _are_ you?"

_Oh_.

Wanda stood for a moment, pondering for an answer. She didn't really have an answer to give him— because, well she didn't know. Strucker had

always referred to her and Pietro as his miracles. His precious experiments.

Wanda thought back to her first appearance as an Avenger; what the public labeled her. _Scarlet Witch_. She never considered herself a witch—her powers weren't magic. Her powers were _her_. She didn't chant spells or light candles or cast hexes. She wasn't a witch.

But she didn't have a better word for it. And they didn't know that, did that?

"I'm a witch." Wanda stated, confidently. "What are you?" She narrowed her eyes, pondering as to how this boy figured out she was something different. To show proof, she twirled her fingers, the red mist dancing around them like fire on a candle. The mist faded into nothingness as soon as it appeared.

"I— human! I am very much a human!" Dunbar's friend stated, his hand shooting up. Dunbar shook his head, amused. "I'm also Mason." He said awkwardly.

Dunbar realized it was his turn for an explanation. "Oh— werewolf." Wanda narrowed her eyes, peering into his mind. There was no indication that he was lying. He flashed his eyes, a bright yellow replacing the blue. "Liam, and— I think this belongs to you." He reaches out, handing her a red leather glove. The glove she had forgotten in the library that day.

_Liam Dunbar_. Huh.

"I'm Wanda. And I think I might be in need of a little bit of... help." She said, carefully.

Liam let out a breathy laugh, relieved. "Oh, this is great. Because I think we do too." He shared a look at Mason. "Ever heard of a Rat King?"

* * *

**GROSS, WAS THE ONLY WORD WANDA COULD USE TO DESCRIBE IT. **It was gross. This rat king? It was gross. More disgusting than the spiders.

Liam and Mason had recruited another on their trip down to the tunnels; a _werecoyote_ named Malia. Which in all honesty, had thrown Wanda off. A werewolf she could believe, but a _werecoyote_? This universe enjoyed testing her patience, apparently.

Wanda had been greeted by a; "Who the hell is this?" And an explanation from Liam. After that, Malia had lost her grumpiness towards Wanda, but her on edge demeanor did not drop.

"You've got two minutes," Malia said, annoyed. Her entire aura told Wanda the girl would rather be anywhere else but here.

"What do you think happened?" Liam asked, his face twisting in disgust as Malia crouched down.

"Rats freaked out... crawled all over each other." She reached out, trying to untangle a rat from the heap of corpses. "Got their tails knotted up..." Malia tore a rat free, holding it up by its tail. "And tore each other apart to break free."

"You read up on rat kings?" Mason asked.

"What's a rat king?" Malia glanced at Wanda. "What do you think, witch?"

Wanda thought for a moment, letting her powers take in the energy she felt in the tunnels. "I sense... panic. They were desperately trying to get away from something." Malia nodded, sniffing the rat, and then held it out to Liam.

"Smell it." Malia demanded.

Liam stepped back several feet. "Ohhhh I'm good! Thank you!" Mason braced himself against the wall, about to throw up. Wanda put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, sending a calming wave through him.

"You okay?" She asked.

"I'm.. I'm good..." He said, dazed. Meanwhile, Malia shot both Liam and Mason an annoyed and impatient look. She turned her attention to Liam specifically, shoving the rat at him.

"Witch is right. Can't you smell it? It's fear." Liam, thoroughly disgusted, pushed Malia's hand towards the floor, dropping the rat with the others.

"It's the same as the rats in the math classroom," Liam said, making Wanda's eyebrows shoot up, moving away from Mason, who had calmed down.

"What rats?" She asked.

"Why were there rats in the math classroom?" Malia asked, exasperated.

"They ran in during fifth period— about fifty of them, right?" He asked Mason, the other boy nodding.

"Well," Malia said. "It must've been the same reason as to what Witchy gave— panic. They're running from something." She glanced at her watch. "Your two minutes are up." Malia turned to leave, moving through the tunnels.

"Where are you going?" Liam called.

Malia continued, not bothering to look back at them. "Paris! This isn't my problem anymore."

"So you think this is a problem?"

"Maybe." She paused. "Probably. But I've got a plane to catch."

"I thought it was canceled?" Mason called, finally staggering to his feet, Wanda helping him.

"Re-routed!" And Malia had left, leaving the three.

Liam and Mason shared a frustrated look, steering clear of the tangled rat bodies. "So," Wanda broke the silence. "any other ideas then?"

Their idea of "other idea" was visiting the local hospital. Wanda was starting to wish she could meet Liams alpha— Scott, wasn't it? The other boy in the woods. Because she was running in circles with these two, maybe Scott could do something _useful_.

The trio walked into the ER reception room, passing a fight between two patients. "Miss. McCall?" Mason called, approaching a nurse. The woman smiled, greeting them. McCall? Must be Scott's mom.

"Hey! Oh my gosh, did you bring me dinner? That's really nice—" She said, reaching for the brown bag that contained the rat king. Mason hurriedly pulled it away.

"It's not dinner, I'm afraid." Wanda said, feeling pity for the woman. Miss. McCall glanced at her, and then looked inside the bag, her look turning into one of disgust.

"Ugh... definitely not dinner." She looked at Wanda, holding out her hand, her smile warm. "Melissa."

Wanda shook it. "Wanda Maximoff."

"I'm sorry they dragged you into..." She looked at the paper brown bag with distaste. "whatever... this is."

Wanda shrugged. "I've seen weirder."

Like a city dropping out of the sky by a robot with anger issues hell bent on wiping out humanity. Or a giant purple man who succeeded in wiping out half the universe.

Succeeded in killing _her_.

"We were hoping you could take a look at it," Liam asked, awkwardly.

Wanda listened to Melissa go into a rant, Liam and Mason trying to convince her to just listen to them. Wanda glanced around the room— there was something in the hospital. Two somethings. She could feel their power— burning, raw power. It was distracting. And she couldn't pinpoint the source of it.

Melissa ushers them away, Liam breaking her out of the trance she had gone in. Unfortunately, before they could make it out of the building, a fight had broken out once again that had been arguing previously.

Melissa called for security, Liam stepping in between the two men,. "Sir, you need to calm down—"

_WHACK_!

The man punched Liam in the nose, Liam staggering back. Wanda felt a surge of fury go through Liam, and it was targeted at the man. He growled, a violent animalistic sound coming from his throat. His eyes flashed, the fangs growing.

Wanda quickly stepped in, standing in front of Liam, between him and the man. "Liam... Liam..." She said, sending a wave of calmness through him. "Liam it's okay, alright?"

The man, however, was not _okay_. "What? _What_?!" He yelled, stepping back. Security had finally come, and Wanda pulled Liam away from the fight. She sent a wave of red mist at the man, unnoticed. He wouldn't remember what he had seen.

Mason had followed them outside, Wanda sitting Liam down on the sidewalk.

"The sun.. the moon.. the truth..." He kept repeating, claws digging into his hands.

"So..." she glanced at Mason. "are all werewolves usually this prone to violence?"

Mason sighed. "You have no idea."

* * *

**WANDA STEPPED** **OUT OF MASON'S CAR, **walking through the school parking lot with tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum. "Hey, so what did you do with the rat?" Liam asked.

Mason sighed. "I... I lost it in the fight." Liam groaned. "Melissas gonna kill us."

Liam was bemused. "Oh, right, like we can ever go back there." He hissed, sarcasm flooding his voice.

"Yeah, and that may work for you, but what about me?" Mason asked, annoyed.

Liam smiled sheepishly. "That may be a problem."

"I erased the man's memory, if it makes you feel any better." Wanda offered, Liam now looking at her with caution.

"You can do that?"

Wanda grinned. "I can do anything. Witch, remember?"

"I didn't hear you cast any spells though," Liam muttered, entering the highschool. Wanda wasn't excited about being dragged along to a study night, and she would never admit this to them— but she enjoyed their company. First time she wasn't truly alone since waking up here.

Wanda waved her hand dismissively. "I don't need them. Everything I do is nonverbal. What do you think has been keeping you calm this entire time?"

She pulled a seat across from the two boys, settling down in the corner of the library. "That was you?" Liam said, his glare dropping. Wanda nodded.

"Didn't want you to go full wolf in a hospital, no?" Wanda's grin fell.

"So what's a witch from Russia doing in Beacon Hills anyway?" Mason asked.

"Sokovia." Wanda corrected. "And I didn't come here straight from Sokovia." She paused, thinking. "I was in New York for a while, and Africa for a little bit after that."

Liam raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you here?"

"Call it..." What could she say? She couldn't tell them she died along with half the universe. "...a feeling. I guess. I was drawn here." That wasn't a lie, because technically she was. Whatever force decided to send her here instead of the awaiting afterlife had done it for a reason. "Speaking of—"

Wanda felt the burning presence, the same one at the hospital. The two signatures were here.

Liam reacted for a different reason, looking up, his eyes narrowing. He got up, abruptly, stomping out of the library. Wanda and Mason hot on his trail.

She followed Liam through the twisted hallways, her heartbeat accelerating with anticipation. What was it?

"Something that got away?" A far away voice said. Liam slammed open the door, skidding to a stop. Two men stood, recognition shooting through Mason and Liam. They knew one of them, Wanda realized. And they knew what they were.

The hostile man growled, glaring at them. "Something that you let out. Something that was brought here. They must be stopped."

Mason learned against Liam. "Is he talking about you?" He glanced at Wanda. "Or you?

Liam stood in front of them both. "I hope not."

The mans eyes blazed blood orange light, bursting into flames, claws forming. The other man did the same, light turning into flame.

"Get behind me," Liam demanded Mason.

"That's a..." Mason breathed

"Hellhound." Liam confirmed. Hellhound?!

_HellHounds_?! And they were at the hospital, right under her nose. He looked at Wanda, probably sensing her confusion. "Parrish is a hellhound, did I— did I forget to mention that?"

The hostile seemed to be beating— Parrish? Their fights moving in and out of classrooms, making dents in the lockers. It was like watching two Hulks go at one another; but they were on fire.

And then the hostile threw Parrish through the double doors, turning his attention back to Liam. Back to her.

"Run!" Liam yelled, pushing Mason away.

Mason shook his head, protesting. "No! I'm not leaving you—"

"It's a hellhound! Run." Liam said, Mason finally listening. The teenager sprinted in the opposite direction, leaving Wanda and Liam to face the beast.

The hellhound growled at her, pointing an accusing finger at Wanda. "You." He spat. "You aren't supposed to be here." Wanda's fears were confirmed; it was here for her.

Wanda's eyes glowed red, red mist forming into balls at her fingertips. Liam's eyes turned yellow, roaring at the hellhound with his claws out. Wanda threw a surge of mist at the beast, knocking him back several feet.

Liam lunged, using momentum to jump off the lockers and land a hit in the hostiles head. Wanda used her powers to pull a locker off the hinges, smacking the hostile to the ground. The hellhound recovered quickly, slamming Liam against the wall, holding the young wolf by his neck. He raised his fiery claws, aiming to strike—

And it stopped, inches from his throat. Wanda stood, several feet away, her powers wrapped around the hellhounds hand.

She focused, her eyes glowing brighter, now using two hands, forcing him away from Liam. The flames were flickering, the Hostile breathing hard on his knees.

She sensed the fear radiating off of Liam— she didn't care.

"You... should be... dead." The Hellhound gasped.

"You know nothing," Wanda spat, what did this beast know?

"The universe cried out in suffering and you escaped it! And now it's out!" This made Wanda falter, the mist dropping.

The hellhound took advantage of this, charging at her. Only to be stopped by Liam, Wanda quickly recovered, tag teaming with the wolf. Wanda blocked his strikes, making sure she was projecting all her negative emotions onto him. It's what he had deserved—

The hellhound released his grip on Liam, blocking a blow from a metal bat. Mason was on the other end, his face shifting into a look of fear when he realized the hellhound was melting it. He took the bat, hitting Mason over the head with it. The teenager fell limply to the ground, out cold.

Liam roared in fury, clawing at the beast. He sent a wave of hell fire at Liam, Liam crying out in pain. Wanda growled, that was both of them hurt because of this— thing.

"It can't stay hidden... it can't stay hidden..." The hellhound muttered into nothingness.

She threw the beast down the hallway, the light extinguishing. Liam was recovering on the ground, crawling over to Mason, who was regaining consciousness.

Wanda's eyes faded back into their normal green, the mist dropping. "Everyone okay?" The hellhound disappeared, leaving behind dust.

Liam groaned, him and Mason supporting each other as they stood. "Considering I've just been hit with hellfire... not so good."

"I think..." Mason rasped. "It'd be a good idea... to call Scott." Liam nodded.

Wanda threw up her hands. _Finally_! She'd get to meet the alpha! "Well," she put her hands on her hips, shifting her weight to one foot. "it's about bloody time for that anyway?"

* * *

**Okay, okay, in my defense... I don't have a defense. I've had some free time to write and I don't. But writers block is a thing, you know? I'll try to be more frequent with my updates. Like and comment please! See you later, loves. **

**~ Beth**


	3. We Are Out Of Time

**CHAPTER THREE; **

**WE ARE OUT OF TIME**

* * *

**WHEN MEETING DEATON**, Wanda couldn't pinpoint the strange energy radiating off of him in waves. It truly felt strange; mystical, in a way of sorts. Not the same amount or _type_ of energy she had received from an infinity stone (that thought made her heartache. She missed Vision dearly) but the energy was strong nonetheless.

She hadn't noticed it when she was with Liam, or when she had been trailing Liam and Scott. But being surrounded by the— _others_, their power signatures were overwhelming. The sheer power had hit her the moment she had entered the building.

First, there was the Banshee. Lydia Martin, the pretty strawberry blonde who's aura reeked of death. She was kind, and greeted her formally. She politely explained what exactly a Banshee was to Wanda, sensing her confusion. Her red-tinted hair reminded her achingly of Nat, but the similarities ended there.

Then, of course, there was the were coyote, Malia Tate, who Wanda had met briefly in the tunnels. Her grumpy demeanor had not changed, though she was in a much calmer mood. Wanda guessed her plans to go to Paris were put on hold. Wanda could only connect Tat to Sam, with her dry sense of humor and straightforward attitude. Wanda would hate to put those two in a room together, fearing they might cause something to explode.

Being closer to Scott McCall, it was clear that he was a leader. Despite appearing as someone who doesn't like being left in charge— he reminded her of Steve, his authoritative but gentle tone and the way he carried himself resembled Rogers too much.

The human, Stiles Stilinski (_Stiles_? She chose not to question it) who had put a hold on an FBI internship to be here (who couldn't go five minutes without mentioning it.) who at first sight, wasn't very impressive. When she asked what he was he described briefly being possessed by "an evil demon who was hellbent on killing everyone." But other than that he was completely human, who could wield a bat and usually keeps everyone alive. (Which received an eye roll from multiple people in the room). He had Tony's snarky attitude and lack of optimism. Wanda was sure if given the proper resources he'd reach Stark's level of intelligence, which was a scary and frustrating thought.

There was Liam, of course, who Wanda had spent some time with. The closer she got the more she realized how he reminded her achingly of Pietro.

There was the Chimera, Theo Raeken (for a second time in a night, Wanda had to ask what something was. It was a mix of multiple species, apparently. Primarily a wolf) who was not technically part of the 'pack'. But Liam had insisted he be there, to Stiles and Malia's dismay.

The hellhound, Jordan Parrish— who she connected to Bruce—who had recovered from the last time Wanda had seen him, was there as well. Not on fire, she might add. If Wanda believed in a God she'd be praying that the hellhound wouldn't burst into flames and kill them all right there and now. She was raised Jewish, but ever since that first bomb dropped, Wanda didn't believe in any gods, not anymore.

Thor didn't count. He was an alien with sparkle hands who had mistakenly claimed the title. "Hi," Wanda offered, awkwardly. "I'm Wanda."

"Did you get your glove back?" Scott asked, catching Wanda off guard.

Wanda blinked. "What?"

"Your glove. Did Liam give it to you?"

Wanda released a breath. "Oh, that." It was odd that he remembered that. "Yes, thank you."

"What are you doing here?" Lydia asked, getting straight to the point. She didn't believe the reason that Wanda had given Liam. Maybe she had more in common with Natasha than Wanda had initially thought.

Wanda contemplated, she could lie. Insist that the reason she gave Liam was true. That she was speaking truthfully, but would the werewolves with their advanced senses truly believe her? Perhaps if she told the truth... she could get some help in getting back.

"I'm pretty sure..." That was incorrect. "I'm actually definitely sure, that I am from a different universe than you."

There was a silent pause, in which unsurprisingly Stiles interrupted with a laugh. "What?"

Wanda held her hands, shrugging. "I... I don't know how to explain it either. It doesn't add up. I died. I'm supposed to be dead right now, and I'm not."

It was Liam's turn to be alarmed. "You're... dead? What do you mean you died?"

Theo nudged Liam. "People coming back from the dead is not exactly foreign around here, you know." Liam only glared

Wanda sighed, an idea strikes her. "If you can... listen to my heartbeat, when I tell you what I'm about to tell you. I am not lying."

She went into her tale, about how she had gotten her powers and wasn't technically a true witch, about the Avengers, about Thanos— describing the alien vividly, what she knew about the Infinity Stones. About the power they had when all were collected. She paused to answer questions from Deaton every now and again, who seemed to believe her.

About how she died, about how half the universe died, and how Wanda and her team had failed to stop it from happening.

Another silence pause, Wanda really starting to hate those.

Deaton seemed to be in the middle ground. "No one caught her heart speeding up, did they?"

Scott shook his head, his eyes not leaving her. "None."

Malia narrowed her eyes. "There would definitely be more of you, wouldn't there?"

Wanda shook her head. "Half the universe. Half of earth— three and a half billion people appearing out of nowhere would be hard to miss."

Stiles held his head with his hands. "So you're telling me, that you come from a different universe, where a big purple grape man wiped out half of all life?"

Wanda should've laughed at the subtlety. "Yes."

"And you were part of that half, and you woke up here?"

"Yes!"

Stiles nodded, turning to Scott. "Are we sure she's not an escaped Eichen House patient?"

It was Wanda's turn to narrow her eyes. "Are you implying that I am crazy?"

"Maybe," Stiles mumbled. "We don't have any proof besides your heartbeat not going up."

Proof. What could she show for proof? Proof. Wanda snapped her fingers, an idea coming up. She turned to Scott. "Let me show you."

Scott, who was mostly silently thinking. "What?"

"My powers," Wanda waved her hand, showing off the red mist. "I could show you the memory. You'd see what I saw. Felt what I felt. But I could show you."

Scott shared a look with his pack. "I could do it, if you want." Lydia offered, Scott shaking his head.

"_No_." He said. "I'll do it. Show me."

* * *

**THE IMAGE WAS CLEAR, FOR THE MOST PART ANYWAY**. The edges were distorted and blurry. The air was humid, in a dense jungle surrounded by tall grass.

Wanda, who was in the red outfit he had first seen her in, stood above a red man— _robot_? Android— with a yellow glowing stone embroidered into his forehead.

"Wanda," He breathed. "We are out of time."

"_No_." Wanda hissed, shaking her head.

"They can't stop him Wanda, but we can." He pulled her glove hand to him. "Look at me. You have the power to destroy the stone."

"Don't." Wanda said, her voice now a hoarse whisper.

"You must do it, Wanda. Please." Wanda touched Android man's cheek, his voice now pleasing. "_We are out of time_."

Wanda shook her head. "I... I can't."

He moved her hand, so that it was now directed at the stone. "You can. If he gets the stone half the universe dies." Wanda stepped back, tears glistenijg in her eyes. "It's not fair. It shouldn't be you, but it is." Wanda was on the verge of sobbing. "It's alright. You could never hurt me." Wanda's shoulders fell, the look on her face telling Scott she only wished to just run away from all this. "I just feel you."

Stone. With a wave of horror, Scott realized one of the stones— one of the stones that Wanda had mentioned, was in this mans, in this _robots_ with feelings, head. And Wanda was set on destroying it.

The red mist, unstable and wild, formed from her hand. With a thrust, the ball turned into a streak, aimed at his head. One hand turned into two, attempting to speed up the process.

With light but heavy thuds, Scott noticed a large, grotesque purple man approaching, a golden gauntlet on his right hand, filled with five glowing stones. He watched as he took down Wanda's team mates with ease, taking down a bearded man who Scott bet could give a wolf a run for its money— with a single punch.

Wanda turned her hand to the man; Thanos, he realized. She shot a streak at him, Thanos attempting to block the streak with a sheild made from the stones. The yellow stone in the androids head began to crack, and he whispered something unintelligible to a now crying Wanda.

Scott could only assume it was "I love you."

The stone burst, along with it sending out a burst of energy that threw Wanda back, only merely startling Thanos.

Wanda lay on the ground, her hands supporting herself. "I understand, my child. Better than anyone" Thanos thunderous voice said, in a soft tone that sent chills down Scott's spine.

He caressed Wanda's hair, Scott feeling a light growl escape his throat. Wanda just glared, eyes filled with venom. "You could _never_." She hissed.

"Today I lost more than you could know. But now... is not time to mourn." He clenched his fist, the one with the golden gauntlet. A green ring of light surrounded it, spinning. The golden blast that had exploded obsorbed back into the androids body.

Wanda, in terror, screamed; "_**NO**_!" Only to be slapped back by Thanos. Scott could only watch as Thanos picked up the android by the neck, who had a look of horror plastered on his face, and plucked the yellow stone right out of his forehead. Tossing the now gray body to the side.

Thanos, placing the stone in the gauntlet, groaned as visible streaks of power surged through him. Before he could raise his fingers, lightning came from the sky. Thanos attempted to block it, failing, as a large battle axe landed in Thanos chest.

A bearded man, dressed in armor and a red cape, landed in front of Thanos, a deadly look on his face. He pushed the axe further into Thanos' chest, the alien screaming, "I told you, you'd die for that." The man said, hinting to something that Scott did not know of.

"You..." Thanos breathed. "Should've gone for the head."

Scott, the bearded man, and Wanda, watched in horror as Thanos snapped his fingers. A loud "_NO!" _coming from the man. Thanos disappeared into a portal, leaving the battle axe behind.

Scott felt thousands of knives plunge into his chest, struggling to breathe. He was feeling what Wanda was feeling— and it was billions upon billions crying out in fear and in pain.

"Where did he go?" The man, who Scott has recognized as the one who had gotten punched, stumbled out of the forest. "Thor... where'd he'd go?" He asked, alarmed. _Thor, like the Norse god_? Scott thought, the lightning added up... _**Thor**_?!

"Steve..." A voice called, Scott turning to see a man with long brown hair and a metal arm— his human arm was disappearing. He fell, evaporating into brown dust, his gun being the only thing left.

Scott blinked, trying to make sure what he just saw was real. Steve went to where the man had disappeared, touching the ground. Wanda had crawled over to the androids body, her head bowed.

It was a cold thirty seconds, as Thor and Steve tried to recollect, Wanda started to disappear. She looked upwards as the lower half of her body turned to dust, and just like them, she was gone with the wind.

* * *

**SCOTT BROKE FROM THE TRANCE WITH A GASP**, pulling away from Wanda hands. Wanda raised an eyebrow, Scott nodding towards his pack. "She's telling the truth."

Wanda smiled, satisfied. The pack believed their Alpha. "Great!" She turned to Deaton. "Now onto the issue of me getting home..."

* * *

**A/N**

**Yes, yes. I know, this is significantly shorter than my previous chapters; and I'm aware of the awkward short end, but I couldn't think of a less awkward end. By a thousand words shorter in fact. But it's a chapter! **

**Leave opinions and questions in the comments!**

_**Till next time, loves!**_

_**~ Beth**_


	4. Raw Talent

**CHAPTER FOUR: **

**RAW TALENT**

* * *

**A SERIES OF EVENTS HAD OCCURRED SINCE THE PACK MEETING**. First; Lydia, the banshee. had thrown a hissy fit when she found out Wanda had been living out of a motel. This led to her insisting that Wanda stay with her for the time being until she could find a place more permanent.

Second; after their encounter with the Hellhound, and he had run off, his body had been found by Scott who was trying to track him. The alpha had come to the conclusion that the bullet had been shot by a hunter— which was a problem.

("What do you mean— hunters?" Wanda hissed.

Scott sighed. "Hunters. They hunt supernaturals; like us."

Wanda scoffed. "Oh, that's just fantastic then.")

Scott and Malia were currently tracking the killer, leaving Wanda feeling utterly useless. She could help. She could stop bullets with her mind! But Scott had insisted on the fact that the hunters couldn't know of her arrival in town yet.

Which was smart, of course, she had an advantage. But that didn't stop her from being annoyed.

Natalie Martin, Lydia's mother, had greeted her kindly—although Wanda could sense the suspicion and fear coming off her in waves— and welcomed her, setting her up in their guest room. She hadn't seen much of the woman since, who was most likely actively avoiding her. Lydia told her she was the principal at the HighSchool, probably actively-avoiding-her-there.

Wanda sat on the guest bed, her eyes closed. For the second time in two days, she was attempting to meditate. There was a sense of foreboding in the air, and it was driving her crazy. Like something bad was about to happen and Wanda couldn't figure out what it was.

And silent, it was painfully silent. Before the split, before the fight in Germany— the Avengers headquarters had always been so loud. Albeit it being Natasha cursing someone out, or Stark and Steve arguing. Sometimes Sam would mess with one of Starks creations and would set off a series of crashes that just drove everyone crazy.

And while on the run, she was hardly ever alone. Someone was always by her side— Vision, Nat, Steve, Barnes. Oh what she would give to be able to be by Vision right now.

_You can't_, what's left of him is a gray shell in Wakanda, she thought bitterly.

Wanda's eyes snapped open at the sound of a knock on wood, groaning. _Oh great_.

Lydia peaked her head into the room, a polite smile on her face. "Hey— Stiles was watching the radio for any suspicious calls from the police. They found his body."

Wanda sighed. "I guess we're on damage control?"

The drive was short, Stiles offering mindless bantering the whole time, in which Wanda attempted to not engage in.

Lydia hopped out of the car as soon as it was parked, Stiles following. Wanda narrowed her eyes, watching Scott talk to the sheriff and Parrish. The wolf was panicked. Wanda exited the car, slamming the door shut behind her in irritation

"Hey, dad," Stiles says, stepping between Scott and the sheriff. "What's going on?"

"Oh, the usual." The man sighed, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Just a dead— what was it?"

"Hellhound," Malia stated.

She approached Scott, who looked at her with relieved eyes"They saw. My eyes— they saw my eyes." He whispered, gesturing with his head towards the officers. "Can you do the thing? The Jedi-mind-trick thing?"

Wanda arched an eyebrow. "As long as you never call it a 'Jedi mind trick' again." She teased. She had gotten enough of those jokes from Stark, back in her universe.

Scott calmed. "Deal,"

Wanda silently edged towards the officers, sending a quick shot of unnoticed red mist at them. They blinked, and they continued searching the area and examining the body.

"I don't get it," Parrish said. "I didn't think you could just kill a Hellhound."

"You _don't_." Stiles was exasperated. "Whoever did this knew what he was and how to kill him."

"Well, it looks a lot easier than we thought," Malia said, the surprise clear in her voice.

"You got anything you wanna add?" The Sheriff asked Scott, Wanda saw the boy hesitate.

He clenched his hand. "Yeah, I don't think it was just any bullet."

The met backup at the McCall house, the ride silent. Stiles stepped out first, frustrated. "What the hell Scott?"

Lydia only sighed. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Malia gave both of them a questioning look, following the others into Scott's house. "Why didn't either of you say anything? Wait, was I supposed to say something?"

Scott shook his head. "None of us said anything because of Argent, and none of us are going to say anything until we talk to him. Everybody good with that?"

Wanda raised her hand. "Question,"

Stiles raised an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Who is Argent? I feel like I'm missing something here,"

"Oh—" Scott shared a look with Malia, hesitating. "Hunter. He's a hunter," With the look Wanda was giving him, he'd seemed like he wanted to hide. "But he's one of us. He has morals— protect those who cannot protect themselves. He's a trustful ally."

"You trust him?" Wanda asked, incredulously.

Scott nodded, a foolish grin plastered on his face. "With my life."

* * *

**WANDA SAT IN FRONT OF LYDIA, HER LEGS CROSSED**. Martin mirrored her, with a look of patience crossed with curiosity. Lydia had given strict instructions to Stiles— to his dismay— to not disturb them.

"How long have you known you were a banshee?" Wanda asked, her curiosity spiking.

Lydia thought for a moment. "Two and a half years, almost."

"And these..." Wanda waved her hand, trying to find a word. "visions... Do they happen often?"

Lydia sighed. "More than I'd like them too,"

Wands tilted her head. She truly wondered how many ghosts followed Lydia around, how many people she's heard die. "And you've really never tried meditating?"

"No," Lydia admitted. "It's not something I thought would help."

"Close your eyes," Wanda instructed. "Slow your breaths." Lydia did as told, sighing in annoyance.

"Now what?" Lydia asked. "It's not doing anything."

"Patience," Wanda commanded. "I want you to think back to where you were— what you saw. What you heard. Force yourself back there. Where are you?"

Lydia was silent for a moment. "The high school... The lights are flickering. There's cobwebs."

Wanda quirked an eyebrow. "Cobwebs?"

Lydia nodded, her eyes remaining closed. "Cobwebs. I reached to touch one of them and..."

"And?"

"Doors... they're slamming shut. One after another." She paused. "Thunder. Lightning. Electricity buzzing— just sounds." She swallowed. "Then I heard him. The other hellhound."

The dead Hellhound, Wanda stopped herself from adding. "What does he say?"

"She lived, and it got out. It was supposed to ride with the Hunt forever." Chills ran down Wanda's spine, making her shiver. He had said almost those exact words to her, when he had attacked her, Liam, and Mason in the hallway. "I assume he was talking about you..."

Wanda swallowed, her throat tight. "He said something similar to me, when he went after me and Liam." She closed her eyes, mentally counting down from ten.

_Ten_. Wanda was here.

_Nine_. Wanda was alive.

_Eight_. Wanda was supposed to be dead.

_Seven_. Wanda had a reason for being here, she didn't know what it was.

_Six_. Wanda wasn't alone.

_Five_. Wanda had friends here— she has allies. She is not alone.

_Four_. She didn't have Vision. She didn't have Steve. She didn't have Nat.

_Three_. Wanda had herself and that was enough.

_Two_. Wanda Maximoff. Her name was Wanda Maximoff.

_One_. And Wanda Maximoff was here and she was alive.

She sighed, opening her eyes. She unclenched her fist, not knowing that they were closed in the first place. The red, dangerous mist that had danced around them died down.

Lydia stared at her, eyes wide. "What do you do?" She asked, with an incline of her head.

"When I'm feeling overwhelmed," Wanda breathed. "I count. From ten. Remind myself of things that I know are for real. Facts."

"It helps?"

"A bit," Wanda shrugged. "What is the Hunt?" She asked, changing the subject.

"The Wild Hunt," Lydia named. "Ghostriders. They ran this— pocket dimension, of sorts. If you're taken there... you're forgotten from living memory. Erased completely." Lydia said, sadly. "Stiles was gone for six months. We got him and everyone else who were missing back." She shook her head. "And Malia's father," She said with disdain. "He's an ally, but an asshole."

Lydia didn't have to mention that they were defeated— destroyed. And whatever rode with them was let out, and it had something to do with Wanda. "What do you think of the sounds you heard?"

"A public facility..." She swallowed. "I've been thinking of the Eichen House. The closed unit.

"Have you... been there?" Lydia nodded.

"I was catatonic, for a little while. I spent my time there." She didn't dive any further than that. "But I think it might have a connection to the dead Hellhound."

Wanda thought for a moment. "If we go, do you think we should recruit that other Hellhound—" She snapped her fingers. "Parrish."

Lydia shook her head. "No, he'll pass off the idea of even letting me near that place. Same with Stiles."

Wanda gave her a lopsided grin. "Well, I guess it'll be just you and me then."

* * *

**HERE WAS THE THING ABOUT EICHEN HOUSE**, the sense of danger never goes away. A dangerous feeling that got worse the further Wanda went into it. The wave of emotions that came off of Lydia told Wanda the banshee felt the same way about the place.

This place erringly reminded her of the Raft. The isolation... the foreboding. She hated everything about that floating prison and she hated everything about this place.

"Of course, I know him. It's Halwyn. He almost killed me, and burned an orderly to death in the process." Doctor Fenris said, agitated.

Wanda tucked her hands into her jacket, trailing behind him with Lydia. "So he was a patient, then?"

Dr. Fenris slid his keycard into the card reader, opening the gate. "Until he checked out."

"What? So you can just check out then?" Lydia asked, sharing a look with Wanda.

"When you build the place, you can. He did in 1912, so he would always have a room."

"So he's over a hundred years old?" Wanda said, thinking back to her encounter with the Hellhound. Perhaps he was an immortal then, like Thor— or his brother, Loki. She remembered him, the eccentric demigod that came down with an army.

Fenris only shook his head. "No one knew his actual age."

"So he's been stuck down here the entire time?" Lydia inquired.

"In a state of hibernation. In case it got out."

Wanda crossed her arms. "What is 'it'?" She glared.

He gulped, tending at her look. "I... I never asked." Fenris turned, attempting to turn on the lights to the hallway. "That's odd." He searched his pockets, pulling out his keycard to open the gate. He stopped, feeling a small gust of wind. "Something is wrong."

"Help me..." A voice pleaded. "Please. Help me. Please."

While Lydia suppressed a shiver, Wanda put on a boldface. One that she could not tell was a facade or not. The rational part of her screamed for her to leave, to run. But she was an _Avenger_. She did not run when someone needed help. "We need to help her,"

Panic rolled off in waves from Fenris. "I'm locking this unit down,"

_Coward_. "You need to open the gate."

Fenris glared. "If you think I'm opening this up, then you belong in there."

He raised his card, ready to close the unit down, a red mist stopping him mid-air. He looked in horror, his look slowly edging towards Wanda, who's hand was stretched out.

Her eyes glowed red, inclining her head. "Open the gate,"

She released him, and reluctantly, he opened the gate. Wanda shoving past him, Lydia behind her. The gate slammed shut behind them, Fenris running away.

"Like that wasn't suspicious," Lydia muttered, glaring at the gate.

"He's a coward," Wanda said. "And a fool." She turned her attention to the hallway. "Hello?"

"It's in here..." A female voice called, faint.

Wanda turned down a hallway, searching for the presence. She kept Lydia behind her, feeling the banshees annoyance.

"There's something in here," the voice called out again, weak.

"Where are you?" Lydia called, louder. The duo took another turn, pausing at a metal door.

The feeling... it was intense here. So intense that it gave Wanda a headache, she shared a look with Lydia. Slowly, Wanda inched open the metal door.

Wanda was no stranger to gore. Her parents were crushed before her. She was a HYDRA experiment— she was an Avenger, trained by the Black Widow herself. She fought aliens and turned to dust.

If not for her training, she might've thrown up. Dead bodies laid across the shower room, Lydia paling behind her.

"Help me..." The woman cried again.

On the left, laid a woman on her back, next to an already dead patient. Wanda rushed to her, only to be pulled back by Lydia. The woman screamed, a cable laying in a pool of water shocking the woman. Gently, Wanda moved the woman with her powers, settling her down on the ground.

"It's here..." Her face turned into a look of horror, looking behind Wanda. Wanda narrowed her eyes at the man. The chaos... her powers... they screamed at her.

Lydia did not pick up on this vibe "We have to get her out of here,"

The world moved slowly, Fenris had grabbed the cable, lunging at Lydia. Only he didn't make it, the cable never touched Lydia. Fenris was thrown back, held against the wall several feet in the air, imprisoned by a red mist.

Wanda's eyes were now glowing intensely, the mist swarming in her anger. "What are you?!" Fenris howled in terror, the mist crushing him.

"I've been called many things," She tilted her head, slowly closing her fingers. "Miracle. Mutant. Sorcerous. _Monster_." She went on. "The one that sticks out the most was _Scarlet Witch_." She smiled, deadly. A challenge for him to say something. "But it doesn't matter what I am, or what I'm called— my name is Wanda Maximoff and I'm holding all the cards." She clenched her fist, the mist tightening around him. Another scream.

"Wanda," Lydia said, warningly. "We don't torture people. Please."

Wanda unclenched her fist, the glow dimming. "Right..." She said. Lydia was right. This was her anger, this was the same hatred she had against Ultron. The hatred she used to have against Stark. She was an Avenger. She turned her attention back to Fenris. "What is your deal?"

"I go home every night, thinking to myself I survived another day in this place. Then I come back every morning to protect people like me from things like you." _There are no things like me_, Wanda thought. "Then I realized we shouldn't be caging them, we should be killing them, eradicating them to protect the rest of us." He continued.

"So, you go around killing innocents because they're different from you?" Wanda said, her anger now spiking.

He laughed. "None of you _things_ are innocent. You're tainted, and you will be eliminated—" His words were lost, falling to the ground with a thud, unconscious.

"He's not dead," She assured Lydia, who looked at her disappointingly. _He should be_. "I was just tired of hearing him talk,"

She sent a wave of mist at him— he wouldn't remember what she did. That they were here. He would forget.

_And he will forget about the supernatural_. Leaving one less problem for her to worry about, at least.

* * *

**SCOTT AND MALIA HAD TRACKED DOWN ARGENT**, to downtown Los Angeles. With his help they figured out who killed the Hellhound was an inexperienced hunter. Leaving Lydia and Wanda to relive their tale of the Eichen house.

Lydia was kind enough to leave out the part where Wanda lost it on Fenris.

"So you took her to the hospital?"

Scott asked, concerned about the woman they had found.

Lydia nodded. "Melissa is taking care of her, she'll be fine. Stiles mad about us leaving him out of it, but he's there with his dad waiting to get questions out of her."

Scott glanced at Wanda. "And every other supernatural in the closed unit— he killed all of them?"

Sadly, Wanda nodded. "All of them."

"He said there was no other way," Lydia added.

Malia growled. "Well, I've got another way. You don't kill everyone."

"I think he was afraid. Afraid of something."

Scott was silent, a look of realization crossing his face. "The wolves, the rats. It keeps coming back to the same thing, fear."

Malia shrugged, frowning in confusion. "But what is everyone afraid of?"

"You," Wanda said, looking around the room. "Us. Humans fear the unknown."

"We don't know what fear would do to somebody. I mean, it can change them. They'll look at us differently." Scott sighed. "They'll do things that they've never done before."

"People can be so stupid," Malia said, coming to a compassionless conclusion.

"They're not stupid," Lydia interjected. "They're scared."

"Lydia's right," Wanda added. "Fear and anger cancels out rational thinking."

"And scared people will do things that you wouldn't believe."

* * *

**A/N**

**Okay, okay, my bad.**

**I should really work on updating more. In my defense I've spent quarantine 75 % on homework and 25% editing (I run a editing account on instagram, scarvletchaos, honestly my main hobby) I also didn't expect this to get to 6K views (thank you guys so much!) but with quarantine not going away soon I really should be updating more. Please leave a review if you have any questions or opinions**

**Alright, well, until next time loves**

**~ Beth**


	5. After Images

**CHAPTER FIVE:**

**AFTER IMAGES**

* * *

"**HOW LONG HAS BRETT BEEN MISSING**?" Wanda asked, chin leaning on her hand.

Lori was shaking. "Since yesterday," The bloodied lacrosse stick laid out in front of her, Scott on the other side of the table, staring at it intently. "It's... it's his. I heard gunshots. It's his blood—"

"It's okay," Wanda shushed, placing a calming hand on the girl's arm. "It's okay, we'll find him."

She sent a calming wave through the girl, the blonde releasing the tension. "Alive?" She asked, her voice small.

In the time Wanda was here, it was odd to see a wolf so... vulnerable. All the ones she had met, including Malia, had strong walls. She couldn't get into their minds as easy as she could say— someone like Tony, or Steve. It was difficult. Lori was different, she was much more exposed than the others.

That Theo Raeken, he was an oddball. Stiles claimed that he was not a natural wolf; more of an experiment. His mind wasn't easy to break through but his emotions were _loud_.

Wanda nodded. "Alive." She confirmed.

"I'll get Lydia and Malia— they can help," Scott assured, reaching for his phone.

Wanda had been meditating with Lydia when Scott called her on the temporary phone she had been given, asking her to come over. Why he had chosen her above Lydia, Malia, or even Stiles she couldn't figure out.

And _that_ bugged her.

Lori, who had calmed down, looked at Wanda curiously. "What are you?"

Wanda sighed, she was getting so _tired_ of being asked that. "A witch, I think.." She twirled her fingers, the red mist dancing around them like ballerinas. "Lab experiment gone right. Something. Not a wolf." She clarified.

"Oh..." She said. "I'm a born wolf. Same with my brother."

Wanda arched an eyebrow. Now that was new information. "Your parents are werewolves?"

"Yeah," She said, deep in thought. "Not very many of us..."

Scott stopped talking on the phone, pocketing the device. "Lydia and Stiles are going to meet up with Corey and Mason and try to trigger a vision. Me and Lori are going with Malia and Liam."

"You and her?" She asked incredulously, eyes narrowed. "Shouldn't I be with you?"

Scott stumbled, taken aback. "Well— I thought... I thought you'd want to help Lydia with her premonition."

A part of her admitted that Scott was right, Wanda could anchor Lydia and make it easier for her. But the Avenger side of her, the one that was trained by the Black Widow and Captain America; the _Scarlet Witch_ wanted to get out on the field. She wanted to do something that wasn't sitting behind a table.

And she was annoyed at Scott. Annoyed at him for underestimating her.

She made up her mind. "You're forgetting, _Mr. McCall_," She said slowly, hostility edging in her voice. "I can stop bullets with my _mind_. I cannot track his scent but I can sense his presence— I'm going with you." She smiled, smugly.

Scott, defeated. "Alright,"

* * *

**WANDA WOULD NOT ADMIT THIS TO THE COYOTE**, afraid of boosting her ego, but Malia was an excellent tracker. She didn't have Bretts scent, but Wanda knew that she almost didn't need it. No She supposed that's why Scott had called her. She and Scott lead the group, Lori close behind, Liam and Wanda trailing in the back looking for anything the coyote and alpha missed.

Liam was tense. On edge. Like Theo, his emotions were loud. "You okay?" She asked in a whisper, slowing down.

Liam frowned. "I don't... I don't know."

"Enlighten me,"

"Me and Mason— we found this body," He sighed, scratching the back of his neck. "It had no face.

Faceless. Everywhere I go— I see it."

_I could help with that_, Wanda thought. She'd have to offer it to him later, she could at least suppress the memory. She wondered if Mason was having the same problem; she'd have to ask.

Instead, she sent a calming wave through him, as she did Lori earlier. He silently thanked her.

Liam stopped, furrowing his eyebrows. Stopping Wanda. "Here— I think he set a trap!" He called Scott and Malia.

Scott sighed. "He's fighting back,"

"At least we know he's alive," Malia offered.

"But he's still hurt." The calming effect that Wanda had on Lori was wearing off, the girl now panicking. "We need to find him— he needs to know we're here."

"You want the hunter to know we're here, too?" Malia asked, annoyed.

"He's new. We can take him." Liam stated, in false confidence.

"What if Brett howls back? He'll lead the Hunter right to him." Malia countered.

"No, we could find him first. There's no human that can track sounds faster than we can, and we're got the advantage. We've done this before. We know what we're doing, guys." Scott said.

Malia scrunched her face in confusion. "How come I can't catch his scent?"

"He's masking it," Lori said.

"Well can someone tell him _not_ to?" Malia said.

All eyes landed on Wanda. Wanda sighed, putting a hand on her hip. "Give me the lacrosse stick."

"Can you do a tracking spell?" Lori asked.

Wanda shook her head, she hated to disappoint the girl. "My powers don't work like that. I don't cast spells."

Malia, who had been using it as a base for his scent, handed it to Wanda. Kneeling, Wanda placed it on the ground, sitting crossed legged in front of it. "Do not disturb me," She said, warningly.

The wolves and coyote took this as an opportunity to move several meters away from her, Wanda closing her eyes and going into a meditative stance.

She went over what she heard about him— Brett. Brett Talbot. Lacrosse player. Natural born werewolf. Injured. Somewhere in this forest. Hunted.

A teenager. A child being hunted. The thought made her sick.

A _child_. That was funny, for her to think of him as such. She was nineteen. Nineteen years old and an Avenger. A survivor. No, she wasn't a child. Not anymore.

She touched the lacrosse stick, connecting to his presence. She reached out, across the forest. Animals. _Earth_... life. Two presences she didn't recognize— dark presences. _Hunters_.

She kept reaching.

Brett. Brett. _Come on._ She thought.

_Running. Panting. Blood. An aching wound. __**Underground**__._

Ah hah! There he was. She was in his head! _Finally_.

"_Brett_," She spoke, mentally . He was panicking. "_I'm with Lori. Stop masking your scent_."

She gasped, pulling out of the meditative stance. She stood up, handing the lacrosse stick back to Malia. "He's underground. I told him to stop masking his scent. It's up to him to listen. The hunters are close."

Malia frowned. "Hunters?"

Wanda nodded. "Two. One male, one female, I think."

Liam growled. "They're covering their tracks."

Scott's expression was unreadable. "Could there be more?"

Wanda shrugged. "Those were the only two I spotted. Brett's underground somewhere."

Lori fell silent for a moment, thinking. "I think I know where he is,"

* * *

**WANDA HAD BEEN MAKING A LIST**, a list of all the places in town that had bad energy. That threw her off and made her powers go haywire.

First, it was the tree stump that Wanda had woken up at. Then, it was the Eichen House— the mental facility that she visited with Lydia.

She had been down here briefly, with Mason and Liam. She didn't like it then. She didn't like it now.

It was Liam who led with Malia, now more eager to find his friend. Scott, to Wanda's dismay, stayed back with her.

"You're mad at me," He said.

"_Annoyed_," Wanda corrected. "annoyed, Mr. McCall. Not mad. You underestimate me. I don't like sitting on the sidelines."

Scott sighed. "No— it's not that. It's not... I'm just worried. About you."

Wanda was flabbergasted. "You're worried about me?"

Scott shoved his hands in his pocket, uncomfortable. "I kept thinking about what you showed me." _Oh_. "You died. That android— Vision, you cared about him and he died. It seems like you're rushing into battle to avoid thinking about it."

Dammit.

"I can handle myself, Scott." Wanda said softly. "I'm an Avenger. That doesn't mean much in your world, but it does in mine. We put others before ourselves. I'll grieve in my own way."

Scott nodded, sollem. "I'm sorry,"

Wanda shrugged. "You remind me of my Captain, you know. He cared too much about others and to little about himself, too. A noble curse."

"I got it! I got his scent!" Malia called, interrupting them. As did the other wolves. Lori sighed, shivering in the coldness of the underground tunnels. "He's been poisoned,"

Scott nodded. "That's why he's not healing."

"What if he only has a few hours to live?" Lori pushed.

Liam, as before, was annoyed. Wanda picked up on that. "If we howl we can find him,"

"That's too risky," Malia stated.

"Bringing the slaughter to the pigs," Wanda stated, to no one in particular.

"Who cares about the risk?" Lori snapped. "He could be dying,"

"He's still moving," Malia countered.

"We just need time to think," Scott said.

"I need him to know that I'm here, that I'm coming for him." Lori said, stress radiating from her.

"Yeah, Lori's right. He has to know we're here."

"Liam, wait!"

If Wanda's powers had included seeing the future, she would've seen what Liam was about to do. She would've stopped him. But that was not a part of Wanda's powers, and she was only a second late to stop him from howling.

_American boys and their death wish._

_Five seconds_. Silence.

_Ten seconds_. Silence.

_Thirty seconds. _Silence.

They continued walking, Lori and Malia leading.

"Why didn't he answer?" Lori asked.

"Maybe he didn't hear us?" Liam said, anxious.

"Maybe he can't," Malia realized.

Scott tensed, listening. "Lori— _no_!"

Scott grabbed the younger wolf, pushing himself in front of her. An arrow lodging itself into Scott's abdomen.

Scott moaned, leaning against the wall with Malia and Wanda's support. "They knew we were coming,"

"Don't talk," Malia commanded. "Just heal and figure this out."

"They've been a step ahead of us this whole time," Scott realized.

"They knew we were coming. They set a trap." Wanda said, chills running across her skin. They knew more than she and the pack thought.

"I'm sorry," Lori said. "but I can't wait around. We have to go."

"We still have the numbers— four to two. We're faster, and we're stronger." Liam said, agreeing with Lori.

"They're smarter," Scott countered, making Liam glare harshly at him.

"I don't care who's smarter, or faster, or whatever. My brother's going to die." Lori hissed.

"Something's not right. That arrow, the trip wire, the poison... These aren't amateurs." Scott said, thinking. Wanda realized he was trying to fill in holes.

"But they've never fought us before."

"And you've never fought Hunters, Liam." Scotts frustration was clear. "We need to stick together."

"I agree with Scott," Wanda said. "We're strongest in numbers. The hunters know that. This is what they want."

This whole thing... it was painfully similar. The Avengers weren't all together for Thanos, and they lost. _Stronger in numbers._

Lori shook her head. "I need to go."

Liam stopped her. "No, you're not going alone. I'll go with you."

"Liam, you don't know who they are or what they're capable of."

"Look, I know who we are. We never give up. Especially when it's someone innocent. When it's someone alone. When it's one of our friends." Liam was dedicated, Wanda realized. Once he was stuck on something he didn't give up

Scott sighed. "Okay. Go. Go. All of you. I'll catch up."

Lori and Liam ran off, leaving Wanda alone with the coyote and wolf.

"Go, Malia. Wanda. Go with them. I just need a minute." Scott groaned. "Go."

Malia glared. "You just need to shut up, alright? We're not going anywhere."

Wanda nodded. "If the hunters come back here you're exposed, you can't fight back."

"See!" Malia exclaimed. "Even Little Red agrees with me— you need to be guarded."

This nickname made Wanda look at the girl curiously. "Little Red?"

Malia nodded, a small grin on her face. "You're short," She said, bluntly. Scott stifled a laugh, which made him gasp out in pain.

Malia reached for Scott's arm, focusing. "What are you doing?" Wanda asked.

"Trying to take his pain," Malia explained. "Something werewolves and coyotes can do." Veins grew up Malias arm, disappearing quickly as they came. She growled in frustration. "It's not working."

Wanda took this to examine the arrow shot at Scott, twirling it in her hands. "It's coated in poison,"

"How did we miss that?" Malia asked.

Scott panted. "We underestimated them."

"But how did they rig a trap that big with us down here in the tunnels?" Malia said, sharing a look with Wanda.

"They wouldn't have had enough time," Wanda stated.

"They didn't. They rigged it a long time ago." Scott was pale, sweat painting his forehead.

"But we've been through these tunnels a hundred times." Malia said, confused.

"And whoever this Hunter is, he's been through them a hundred more. And he knew we were here. He was waiting for us, tracking us... He was prepared, and we weren't." Scott sighed.

"Any idea who?" Wanda asked, in thought. She knew.

Scott only shook his head. "There aren't a lot of people who spend time in these tunnels."

"Who was the last hunter we saw down here?" Malia wondered.

"Argent," Wanda's confusion only rose. _Fuck._

"I thought you said Argent is trustworthy?" Wanda asked, incredulously. Although, it was very hard to think anyone who _hunted_ people were trustworthy.

"And... Gerard," Scott drawed out, blowing Malia's eyes wide.

"Who is that?" Wanda asked.

"Argent's father...dangerous. Argent broke off from him and his... group." Scott explained.

"The trap wasn't lethal." Malia counterd.

"It slowed us down, and—"

"Split us up," Wanda finished. "_Bloody hell_," She cursed. They fell into more than one trap.

Malia helped her pull Scott up. "He's planning something else, another trap." Scott said, masking his panic.

"And Liam and Lori are walking right into it."

Wanda and Malia pulled the alpha down the tunnels, following Lori and Liam's trail. They didn't make it far, Scott collapsing against the wall. "I'm sorry..." He apologized, weakly."

"Be quiet," Malia hissed, once again trying to take his pain.

Wanda blanked out as the two exchanged words, arguing. Lori and Liam... and Brett... something was about to happen. The tunnels were screaming at her.

Splitting up. Splitting up is what doomed them against Thanos— splitting up is what damned them here. Wanda hated that. But everything else... it was yelling at her. She needed to _go_.

"I'm going to go find them," Wanda stated

"What?" Malia asked, breaking the argument with Scott. "No!"

Scott shook his head, agreeing with Malia. "You can't— it's too dangerous. Wanda you can't."

"They're running into a trap. I'll lead them away from here; there's only two. I've taken down half an army of aliens. They won't harm me." She promised. She _promised_.

"What if you exhaust yourself? What if they tire you down?" Malia asked, letting Scott lean on her.

"They won't." Wanda had already made up her mind, she was going. She looked at Malia. "Take care of him. Alright?"

"Wanda..."

She was off, not letting them have a chance at changing her mind. She now needed to trust only in her powers— only in the _chaos_ that she controlled. She could follow their presences if she focused hard enough.

She felt Liam. She felt Brett and Lori. But she couldn't feel the hunters— they weren't down here.

Had they left? Had they given up on their hunt? No, that was _too_ easy. And nothing right in Wanda's life has ever been just _too easy_.

And it was too easy that she had skidded to a stop in front of Lori and the beaten up werewolf. Brett. "Wanda?" Lori breathed, out of breath.

Wanda nodded, helping Lori support Brett. "Scott is with Malia," She said, the trio coming to a latter.

"They're safe. For now." She looked up, opening the hatch with her powers.

Brett looked at her in a mix of confusion and terror. "What?"

Wanda shook her head. "Explain later, c'mon." She helped him up the latter, then Lori, closing the hatch.

Only to be met with the blinding lights of an armored vehicle, to figures stepping out.

_No_! Wanda's powers screamed. She should've felt them? Why didn't she feel them? She helped them lead the two siblings right into a trap!

Time slowed. She had heard Liam calling out to them. Brett and Lori held hands, eyes closed, waiting for their inevitable death.

_No_, Wanda thought. It was not inevitable. She thought of Pietro, and how he got shot down mercilessly by Ultron. About the people she had accidentally killed, those people in the hospital, trying to protect Steve. The ghosts that would haunt her forever.

Wanda then realized **why** she was here. To protect. To stop these seemingly inevitable deaths. Not just Brett and Lori, but whatever was to come.

Her name is Wanda Maximoff. She is an Avenger. She is the Scarlet Witch. She destroyed an infinity stone while having a panic attack and while holding off the most powerful man in the universe. And these kids, they weren't going to die. Not today.

Because they had an _extremely_ pissed off, and agitated witch protecting them.

She formed a shield with her powers, the red mist stopping the bullets. The gunfire died down, shocking the hunters. She bullets dropped to the ground with gentle thuds. Wanda yelled, in anger, in frustration— a war cry, red mist shooting at the hunters, knocking them off their feet.

An older man, and a dark skinned woman laid on the ground, not dead. Not yet. Wanda moved her arms, danced like, and _threw_ their armored car, flipping their armored car onto its back.

Red mist, formed into balls in her hands. A threat. A challenge. Like the one she had given Fenris. She was not afraid. _Come and get it._ Her eyes glowed fiercely, she would show them—

_Cars_. More cars were coming. More hunters? It didn't matter. She looked down the manhole, Liam staring wide eye at her. Then back to the two wolves, who were radiating both wonder and fear.

"_Run_," She mouthed to Liam.

She didn't look to see if he did, once again knocking the two hunters further away. She hoped she at least broke some of their bones.

She grabbed both Brett and Lori, and booked it for the woods surrounding the deserted street.

_Let the witch hunt begin,_ Wanda thought, not looking back for the arriving hunters.

* * *

**A/N**

**Fun fact: that last scene with Wanda protecting Brett and Lori is what inspired me to write this. You bet your **_**ass **_**I was mad about them dying. I wanted Wanda, or someone just **_**powerful **_**to show up and kick Gerard and Monroe's ass. They know she's in town and they are scared.**

**So, yeah, I'm diverging from cannon a lot. But there would be no point of the story if Wanda being there did not change around some things. My pattern has been every other chapter is an actual episode so this book isn't eleven chapters long, but I wanted to write this chapter so badly. **

**Might accidentally be giving some weird sexual tension to Scott and Wanda despite being a Scalia stan. I didn't really plan for her to be with anybody but shit happens.**

**Until next time, loves.**

_**~ Beth **_

_**(If I had been a Star Wars fan when I started this this would've been a Wanda x SW!Prequels fic but it's to late now)**_


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